Ecuador day 7: Santiago and Bartolome

you know how you were always told that penguins don’t occur naturally in the northern hemisphere? well, you were lied to. the Galapagos penguin’s habitat (the Galapagos islands) straddles the equatorial line and thus are often seen in northern waters. teach your kids this and they can be the irritating ones in class that prove their teachers wrong on miscellaneous trivia.

the second-smallest penguin species in the world, the Galapagos penguins look almost more like ducks at times, and are, of course, very cute. even grown men will admit that. the community of penguins we came across had made Bartolome Island their home, in the shadow of Pinnacle Rock.

Pinnacle Rock is almost always photographed from the same direction, which is odd because it is at least equally compelling when viewed at a right angle to this vantage point. it takes on more of a tower-like appearance and less of a conical shape. maybe it has to do with the lighting, none of my shots from the opposing angle turned out very well.

ah … just looking at that breakfast spread makes me hungry

we had a hugely active day, with two hikes and two snorkels. I figured it would be a great day to conserve space on my memory cards, since the morning hike was through a lava field. should just be black rock, right? how interesting could that be?

I was totally wrong, the lava field was equally as fun as everything else (and perhaps more unique), so I used up tons of memory. I’m just glad I’m not shooting film. how did anyone ever feel satisfied shooting roll film back in the day? I know I used to, but I don’t think I could ever go back.

umberto totally outshone even himself at lunch. not to mention he made the best ecuadorian ceviche we had all trip.

when all is said and done, there’s nothing like a cold coke and stunning sunset to wrap up the day.